


issues

by lostalongtthewayy



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: ? - Freeform, Babysitting, Captain Swan - Freeform, F/M, Gen, Quiet Moment, cs fluff, s6 spec moment
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-05
Updated: 2016-09-05
Packaged: 2018-08-13 04:29:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,731
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7962469
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lostalongtthewayy/pseuds/lostalongtthewayy
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Emma finishes a session with Archie and decides to let her heart take her to the one person she needs to be with, Killian :) | cs quiet/fluffy moment with a dash of Killian/Emma babysitting :)</p>
            </blockquote>





	issues

* * *

 

It’s still early when Emma leaves his office. Like always, she has so many mixed feelings after her visit with Archie. On the one hand, there’s definitely certain relief at being able to just say _aloud_ some of those things she’s kept bottled inside her for so long.

On the other hand, however, Archie telling her so many truths, to her face, with no filter, is still a little unsettling.

Emma sighs, walking out of the building; her car is parked in front of Granny’s, but she feels more like walking to the docks. There’s no doubt in her mind that is where she wants to be. Probably where she _needs_ to be too.

The day is a bit overcast, but not exactly on the cold side. The closer to the water she gets, the more the wind starts picking up, but still nothing Emma can’t handle.

She reaches the _Jolly Roger_ and looks around before walking on deck. “Hello…” Emma calls, peering up and down the ship. She doesn’t see Killian right away, but a moment later, she _hears_ him.

“Careful, lass!” He calls from the front of the ship. “No one steps aboard the  _Jolly Roger's_  decks without permission from her captain first!”

And of course those words alone are enough to melt so much tension off Emma’s shoulders. A smile forms easy as she steps inward. “ _My_ , Captain, whatever are you gonna do to me?” Emma tells him sarcastically, finding him sitting by the front deck.

There’s a large picnic blanket spread on the deck, Killian sitting on it in the company of her little brother. There are a few toys scattered about them, Neal’s diaper bag in one corner, and of course the ever-present trusty container of “ _Puffs_ ” _just_ slightly out of sight from Neal. The baby loves those snacks — _with a passion_ — so every time either she or Killian are babysitting —or the two of them, most of the times— they know to keep those snacks handy in case of an emergency —read: sudden crying baby not easily soothed.

In the end, Emma tilts her head watching them both; baby Neal gnawing on a plastic giraffe on his back, while Killian watches her from his spot. He speaks only a beat later, “All depends on why you're here, love,” He says and she chuckles —can’t help it if she tries.

Emma steps in then, kneeling on the blanket next to Killian and sighing deeply as she does. Killian is grinning as he leans forward, cradling her head with his good hand. They smile at each other before he kisses her forehead and she melts right then and there with no warning. His touch is so sweet, so _loving_ , and he lingers for a moment.

Emma’s eyes shut, and she breathes in and out deeply before he kisses her again, and then pulls back. She smiles playfully at him when their eyes meet. “I can’t believe you ended up on babysitting duty today,”

Killian shrugs slightly. “Don’t mind,” He tells her, eyeing the baby briefly. “Besides, Dave aske–”

“— _Dave?”_ Emma stresses playfully, Killian glares at her, but she can’t stop chuckling at that pouty face he’s sporting in that moment.

“Swan.” He admonishes her but her laughter — _that sound_ , is too much for him, and he finds himself smiling too.

“Oh you’re ridiculous,” Emma shakes her head at him, the smile on her face stupidly wide. She chuckles, averting her gaze from Killian and instead focusing on the little baby on the blanket. She leans down close to Neal and nuzzles her nose against his chubby cheek. He’s way more interested in his teething giraffe than his big sister, but Emma still can’t help but melt at his chubby little self. Killian has him completely bundled up —even though it is truly not _that_ cold at all. Neal’s just a little over seven months old now, almost crawling and sitting up all on his own mostly with no help. It’s a little funny how right now how he can barely move with all the clothes Killian has on him.

Emma strokes his cheek and whispers a _hello_ in his ear. “Killian is _ridiculous_ Neal, _but_ Dad likes him,” she shifts to look at Killian then, smile silly on her face. “ _And_ trusts him, and he’s good with you so we are gonna see past his ridiculousness, okay? Just this time?”

Neal gurgles, letting go of Sophie the giraffe and instead shifting his little head to Emma. He offers her Sophie, but Emma doesn’t take it. “You keep it,” she tells him, lifting herself back into a sitting position. “You are teething, kid; you need her more than I do,”

Neal stares at her, as though considering her words, his expression serious and focused. It makes Emma chuckle.

She looks over at Killian and appreciates the fact that he’s not asking her any questions yet. She wants to tell him, actually, but a little bit of normalcy right now doesn’t feel so bad.

He opens his arms for her, and Emma doesn’t think about it before crawling to his side. Killian hugs her, and Emma yet again melts into him. Her cheek is pressed against his chest, and his chin is on her head. She’s safe and for this little bit of time, nothing outside them truly matters.

Eventually, _Emma_ is the one to break the silence. “Archie put a name to a bunch of my, uh, _issues,”_

“Did he now?”

Emma nods, the skin of her cheek rubbing against the material of his shirt.

“Do you wish to tell me about it, love?”

Emma doesn’t respond right away, instead focusing on Neal —the way he’s kicking his legs up in the air, seemingly completely amused by his own movements.

Killian presses a kiss to her head making Emma smile softly. She looks up at him, briefly meeting his eyes. “Thantophobia,”

He frowns in slight confusion. “Excuse me love?”

“Apparently that’s the technical term,” she shrugs.

“For what?”

“It’s the fear to lose someone you love,”

“Oh…” Killian lets out slowly, understanding dawning on him. “I suppose you aren’t the only one with that fear, Swan,”

She nods. “I know,” she says, but it comes uneasy. “Archie thinks I take it a bit too far though —at least sometimes,”

He nods in reply. “What else did you learn?”

Emma lets out a long breath that ends with her blowing raspberries —she doesn’t mean it to be funny, but it still makes Neal giggle from his spot.

His belly laugh freaks the tension and Emma’s thankful for that. She laughs too, turning to him. She scrunches her nose shaking her head at him for making fun of her.

It makes the baby giggle again, and she chuckles too. “He’s lucky he’s cute,” she says, looking at Killian, a soft smile still spread across her face. “But anyway…”

“Aye?”

She thinks for a moment, looking up at the setting sun before speaking. “Archie said how some people are actually afraid of being _too_ happy. Apparently they think something tragic is going to happen if they are,”

Killian nods thoughtfully. “Do you agree?”

Emma twists her lips uneasily before nodding. “Sometimes,”

Killian wets his lips, feeling her own uneasiness as his own. He’s not quite able to meet her eyes as he speaks, so he looks at the babe —he’s innocent, and calm…happy, _safe_. “Me too, Swan,” He confesses, before adding. “ _Sometimes_ ,”

Emma nods, understanding too the reasons behind his words. She cups his jaw and makes him look at her. She tries for a smile, the happiest one she can form, and she’s glad when Killian matches it. “You know what I think we should do?”

“Aye, what’s that?”

“I think we should spend more time with my mom,”

“Your mother?” He asks her, confused. Emma simply nods. “Why?”

“I don’t know, maybe if we do, more of her go-to unrelenting optimism will rub off on us?” It makes Killian chuckle so Emma smiles too. She waits a beat before speaking again. "There’s a name for that too, you know?”

“Is there, now?”

“Yep,” Emma tells him, popping the ‘p’. “Cherophobia…”

“Cherophobia?” He says back, his accent making the word sound strangely sexy —which is positively the last thing Emma should be thinking right now, but…she just can’t help it.

It makes her smile in spite of everything. “Do you know what else?” She tells him, and there’s a shift in her mood that Killian doesn’t miss.

It piques his interest, and he grins, nodding at her to just tell him already.

“Pretending _not_ to care, is actually the _habit_ of someone who generally cares the most,” she tells him, trying hard to sound serious. She fails obviously, the smile tugging at her lips too hard to hide. “ _You_ are guilty of _that_ too, you know!” She’s nodding strongly, smiling at him smugly, and he laughs.

Killian has the nerve to laugh and Emma just punches his arm. “Shut it, I mean it, I’m serious,” she says as he looks away from her and keeps laughing. “It’s an _emotional defense mechanism_!” She quotes Archie almost verbatim. “Kind of like your sarcasm and sass…”

At this Killian suddenly stops snickering and instead meets her eyes. “Pardon me?”

“Oh, I’m sorry; did you think I couldn’t see through that mask you wear every time you get testy and sassy on someone?” She asks him, her own sarcasm heavy. “Myself included,”

“Oh,”

Emma nods knowingly. “Yeah,” she says. “I thought so,”

Killian looks effectively sheepish; face ducked, index finger scratching the back of his ear.

Emma grins. “I guess today wasn’t a total waste of time, after all,”

“No?”

“I don’t think so,” she tells him honestly. “I’ve had a lot on my mind lately, so much has happened, maybe it’s not the worst thing if I let Archie tell me it’s okay to be a bit off, you know?”

“Absolutely, Swan,”

She nods at him, then looks at her brother. “What do you think Neal? Is your sister ready for the looney bin?” Emma asks him, and hears almost immediately Killian groaning.

“No, she’s not,”

She chuckles, but doesn’t pay him much mind. She puffs a breath, side-eyeing Killian before just scooping up her brother in her arms. “Why hello there, you,” she chirps at the baby, smiling at his confused little face. “What do you say we head back kid? Get ya out of all these clothes and feed you some of that soggy orange looking mush you love?”  

Neal seemingly doesn’t appreciate her attempt to make him smile. Instead, he looks at her serious as ever, not impressed at all. Emma pouts and deflates. “Don’t make me do it,” she warns, but there’s still no reaction from Neal. Emma lets out a breath and nods. “Fine, but remember you asked for it,” she tells the baby seriously. She shares a look with Killian —who is trying _hard_ not to smile— and then returns her attention to her brother. Taking in a deep breath and holding it, Emma looks at Neal and cries victory inwardly at the way his round green eyes grow wider —he knows what is coming, and he likes it. In the end, Emma inches closer to his chubby neck and blows raspberries until Neal is squirming in her arms, giggling like a tiny maniac.

Emma laughs too, and she can hear Killian doing it as well. She takes yet another breath, hugging the baby closer to her and blowing more and more raspberries on his neck and cheeks.  

She stops eventually, her baby brother happily collapsing against her. His head finds her shoulder and Emma instinctively hugs him a little tighter to her. “I warned you,” she says playfully then, stroking his small back.

Killian is smiling at them from his spot, aching to just move and take part of the hugging.

When Emma turns to meet his eye, he’s tilting his head, watching her. “Seriously, home?”

“Aye,” Killian replies with a nod. “Let’s head home, love,” and with that they both rise to their feet, Killian first, and then Emma with a bit of his help.

He picks up the blanket and folds it, putting it away as Emma carries the babe off the ship. She waits for Killian on the dock, bouncing baby Neal and making silly faces at him.

Once Killian joins them — _diaper bag in hand_ — they start their walk back to Granny’s so Emma can retrieve her car. Killian’s arm is draped around her waist, and Emma finds herself resting her head on his shoulder every once in a while. They walk mostly in silence, her baby brother quickly falling asleep in her arms, his tiny head on her shoulder.

Emma kisses the side of his head just because, and then catches Killian’s eyes watching her. He’s smiling, so she returns it, chinning up so that they can kiss as well. It’s soft, just a peck on the lips, yet it makes everything feel lighter. Her belly fills with butterflies and her skin gets goosebumps just like that. Emma kisses him once more before just snuggling closer to his side. She lets out a deep breath, humming a little as they continue their walk.

They are almost to Granny’s when Killian clears his throat slightly.

“What?” Emma asks him, slowing down her pace.

“Uh?”

“Don’t do that,” she says but there’s no edge to her words. “Tell me,”

Killian takes in a breath, looking down at her. “Did you mention Archie anything about those, uh, nightmares,”

“Nope,” Emma answers, her eyes down. She feels him shrug and is glad he isn’t judging her. “Next time, maybe?” She tells him, lifting her eyes to meet his.

Killian offers a single nod and smiles. “Aye, maybe next time, love.”

“Yeah,” Emma sighs.

They share one more look before continuing their walk. Out of nowhere, Emma chuckles just as they are rounding a corner and Killian can’t help looking at her with narrowed, confused eyes.

“Oh it’s nothing!” Emma assures him, letting out yet another soft laugh. “Just thinking about whatever weird, over the top name Archie may have for those freaking nightmares, it’s probably something weird, and obnoxious,”

Killian smiles —he just has to, and then nods. “Quite likely,”

“You know,” Emma starts and her mood has shifted considerably all of a sudden. Killian just waits until she’s ready to tell him.

She bites her lips a little, thinking in just the right way to word this. She shifts baby Neal in her arms and then looks at Killian out of the corner of her eyes. “All of this —you know, _life,_ it’s not shiny, and perfect, and…happily ever after material all the time, but…” she pauses, giving a shrug. “I got _you_ ,” she says, and it’s a statement.

Killian gets it and he nods. “And I, you,”

“Yes,” Emma agrees. “In spite of all the things that aren’t still _right,_ I know, without needing Archie to tell me, that my life is better these days because you are here, and because I love you and you me. Or simply because living life with you by me is nothing short of spectacular —I know all this,” she laughs at her own words and it is almost loud enough to wake up the baby.

He shifts in her arms, and with wide eyes, Emma turns to him.

Killian in any case laughs softly, and waits until she shushes the babe back to sleep. When she meets his eyes again though, he speaks. “Spectacular, huh?”

“Yes,” Emma doesn’t even pretend to be ashamed to admit that —it _is_ pretty spectacular thank you very much.

Killian’s mocking grin drops a little, but he’s still smiling, just softer now. “I agree, Swan,” he says, and she knows he means it too.

Emma nods at him. “I’m glad,” she tells him, smiling playfully when Killian leans in for a kiss. She bites his lower lip just a little when he pulls back, and he smirks at her, challenging her. Emma giggles and shakes her head —there’s time for playtime later. “Let’s keep moving now, I’m _starving_ ,”

He shakes his head at her dramatics, but keeps smiling. “As you wish,”

And at those words their eyes meet one more time. Emma gives him a firm nod. “ _Good_.”

**Author's Note:**

> I've had this written for weeks now, but didn't get around to post it. There was this facebook post I saw a few weeks back with those terms Emma tells Killian in this story, so it kind of inspired me to write this. Thank you for reading =)


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